Should I charge hourly or flat rate?
Short answer
Flat rate whenever possible. It rewards you for being fast and protects you from explaining every minute.
Why flat wins
Customers hate the meter. Hourly punishes you for being efficient: get faster, make less. Flat rate aligns you both around the outcome.
When hourly fits
Discovery work, true unknowns, true emergencies. Cap it: 'Hourly up to four hours, then we re-quote.' Never open-ended.
Ask your version of this question
This is one business owner-tested take. Your shop size, trade, and team change the answer. Ask the exact version inside Ask a Shop Owner and get a response grounded in how owners like you actually handled it.